The NZ Transport Agency and Auckland Transport say congestion will be extremely heavy around the Constellation Drive interchange on Auckland's Northern Motorway (State Highway 1) during this afternoon’s peak.
The Police have closed the northbound lanes of the motorway over Constellation Drive while they continue investigations into a fatal shooting.
The Transport Agency’s Regional Traffic Operations Manager, Kathryn Musgrave, says the northbound section of the motorway from Tristram Avenue has been re-opened only as far as the Constellation Drive interchange. All traffic will be diverted down the off-ramp at the interchange, across Constellation Drive, and on to the northbound on-ramp to rejoin the motorway again.
“There is going to be a lot of pressure on the interchange and the temporary layout we will have in place to try to keep traffic moving,” says Mrs Musgrave. “We’re expecting the afternoon peak to continue a lot longer than normal and people will have to be patient and drive with extreme care while we have this temporary traffic management in place. All road users will be affected – drivers as well as those people who rely on public transport.”
Mrs Musgrave says people do have a number of choices to try to avoid delays. They include leaving for home early to avoid the rush, delaying their journey to avoid the heaviest periods of peak, leaving the motorway earlier and using arterial roads as an alternative, and using the Northwestern (SH16) and Hobsonville/Upper Harbour (SH18) motorways as another alternative route to link up with North Shore arterial roads.
Auckland Transport says traffic will be slower than normal around the Wairau Road, East Coast Bays Road Constellation Drive, and there may be delays to bus services on many areas of the North Shore.
The NZTA, AT and Police are all working together to try to keep traffic flowing as freely as possible and road works on some arterials have finished early to alleviate congestion where possible.
All southbound lanes of the Northern Motorway remain open, but the NZTA appeals to drivers not to slow down as they pass the Police examination scene at Constellation Drive so that traffic continues to flow freely.
